Efficacy of polymerase chain reaction for detection of deep mycotic infections: confirmation by autopsy

A method based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of fungal 18S rDNA sequences was tested for the detection of fungi in blood samples. In order to increase sensitivity and specificity, PCR products were hybridized to the radioactively labelled fragment of 18S rDNA gene. Blood from 28 patients with haematological malignancies was taken immediately after death and the results of PCR analysis were compared with results of autopsy examination. To the best of our knowledge, no study of such a design has been published previously. PCR analysis turned out to be very sensitive (92%) and specific (92%) as well as capable of detecting various kinds of fungal infections (localized as well as generalized).